Mexico weekly ledger., 1887-05-12
COAL AND CLAY.
The Coal and Clay Interests
of Audrain County.
A SERIES OF INTERESTING ARTI-
Giles ON THIS SUBJECT.
The Ledger Sends a Reporter to Vandalia
to Write mp the Mines.
The Resources eft Audrain County tteinr
Fully and Rapidly developed.

deriving tuab StlLC ~ Ut me
coal and clay measures of Audrain
county would be acceptable to the
patrons of the LEDGER at this inter-
esting period of its history, the edl-
tor Of this paper has put himself to
some pains and expense to obtain the
following report Of them: There are
at Nandalia two. enterprisirg mining
companies. The Audrain Manufac-
turing Il Coal Mining Co, under the
management of S. d. Ely, Pres, H.
S. Greer, Sec, c. G. Daniel, Treas,
and j. II. Caldwell General Manager,
incorporated in 1886, with a capital
of $4,000, and tie Nandalia Coal
Co, under the management Of Rich
ard Prior, Pres. W. Il Williams,
Sec, W. J Hughes, Treas, and ID.
Stacey, Foreman, incorporated a year
and u half since with a capital OF
IS, 800. These gentlemen are solid
citizens Of a progressive city, full OF
energy, and it is to thei: manly and
| open frank heartedness and willing
ness to impart information that the
LEDGER is indebted for the following
statement of their operations:
The Vandalia Coal Co. is an CO.
operative assn, composed. of about 40
miners, who own its stock and oper-
ate it's mines. These gentlemen
formerly worked at Higbee, which
place they left on account of the in
PRODUCTION of colored labor, and were
employed by the Chicago & Alton
Railroad Company to prospect for
coal in the vicinity of Booth, their
new division. Finding no traces of
coal there, they prcspected west I'M
til they became satisfied that the coal
measures Of this county reached only
three miles east of VandalIa on the
line of the Chicago * Alton railroad.
In consequence of which conclusion,
an arrangement was made with the
association to- mine cCal west of
Fandalia north of their road oppo-
site tue shaft sunk about So feet to a
80 inch coal vein byS. D. Ely, based
upon an anticipated demand OF from
1900 to 1000 tons Of coal annually.
The association Immediately obtain
ed a certificate of incorporation, and
leased 5 acres with the privilege of
extending their lease to so more ad-
joining acres from A. NJ. Pike, Esq,
at a royalty Of 4c for every bushel of
coal mined. The coal IN the five
acres has been exhausted and opera
tons commenced on the adjoining
fifty. Recently as much as from
500 to S12O per month royalty has
been paid, and it is estimated that not
less than $3.50 per acre has been real
lied by Mr.. McPike for the coal in
the original five. acres. The opera
tions of this company are conducted
ordinarily by its members, but in the
winter, when there is a demand for coal
beyond that used by the railroad, the
force is increased to from 60 to IS.
The yearly average is estimated at so
operators, each Of whom averages
from so to 60 bushels per day. The
buildings of this company are an en-
CINE house containing a hosting and
lowering engine, and an elevated
platform for receiving coal and dump
ing it onto trains that approach it on
a switch laid down to it. Practical
ly and financially the operations of
this company have been satisfactory.
1t has confined itself to coal, the
quality of which has been acceptable
to the railroad and its other consum-
ers. In appearance it resembles the
coal taken from the lowest vein of
the st. Louis county coal measures.
The operations of the Audrain
Manufacturing & Coal Mining Co.
are carried out or so acres of coal
land situated Immediately south of
the railroad 1t has employed at
times from 40 to 80 miners, and
has excavated the coal of about 5
acres. 1n addition to supplying q
local demand, large quantities have
been shipped west. 1t is the source
from which the brick mandatory at
Fulton has obtained its fuel. Under
meath the coal in the vicinity of Van
dalia, is a superb strata of fire clay,
which has been removed, in places, to
the depth of about twelve feet with
out going completely through it.
The Audrain County Manufacturing
Co. has commenced an effort to in
crease its by utilizing it.
The clay strata has as much as three
Characteristic shades in it. The up
per 3 feet of it is of a blue color sup
posed to have been impaired to it by
the superlying coal. There is about
the same thickness of a whittier vsrie-
ty, and the remainder of the strata is
still whittier and purer and seemingly
well adapted to the manufacture of
white stoneware. Like the coal, this
clay resembles that found under the
coal measures of St. Louis county at
~Cheitenham, where immense quanti-
ties have been manufactured into fire
brick, filing and pottery, and still
greater quantities sent to Pittsburg
and other places to assist the manu-
| f~acture of glass. Mr.. Caldwell spent
sometime at Cheltenham examining